Patients on dialysis often have insomnia (trouble getting to sleep). Some people have a special problem called the sleep apnea syndrome. Episodes of apnea are breaks in breathing during sleep. Over time, these sleep disturbances can lead to "day-night reversal" (insomnia at night, sleepiness during the day). This can cause headaches, depression, and decreased alertness. The apnea may be related to the effects advanced kidney failure has on the control of breathing. Some treatments may work with people who have sleep apnea, whether they have kidney failure or not. These include losing weight, changing sleeping position, and wearing a mask that gently pumps air continuously into the nose (nasal continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP).
Many people on dialysis have trouble sleeping at night because of aching, uncomfortable, jittery, or "restless" legs. You may feel a strong impulse to kick or thrash your legs. Kicking may occur during sleep and disturb a bed partner throughout the night. Theories about the causes of this syndrome include nerve damage and chemical imbalances.
Moderate exercise during the day may help, but exercising a few hours before bedtime can make restless legs worse. People with restless leg syndrome should reduce or avoid caffeine, alcohol, and tobacco. Some people also find relief through massages or warm baths. A class of drugs called benzodiazepines may also help. They are often used to treat insomnia or anxiety. These prescription drugs include Klonopin, Librium, Valium, and Halcion. A newer and sometimes more effective therapy is levodopa (Sinemet). This drug is also used to treat Parkinson’s disease.
Sleep disorders may not seem important, but they can make your quality of life worse. Make sure to bring these problems up with your nurse, doctor, or social worker.
Borrowed from this great site:
http://kidney.niddk.nih.gov/Kudiseases/pubs/expect/#sleep
If you have kidney problems this is a site that will answer many questions for you.
Wishing you the best and good luck in all you do.